DPA
New York, May 24 (DPA) US stocks retreated Friday, capping the worst week since February on new reports of falling housing prices and automaker Ford warning that energy costs were impacting sales. The National Association of Realtors said existing home sales fell one percent in March, sparking a sell-off of homebuilders.

Ford Motor Co, the second-largest US carmaker, blamed falling truck sales on the surging price of petrol in the United States.

The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 145.99 points, or 1.16 percent, to 12,479.63. The broader Standard & Poor’s 500 Index fell 18.42 points, or 1.32 percent, to 1,375.93. The technology-heavy Nasdaq Composite Index dropped 19.91 points, or 0.81 percent, to 2,444.67.

For the week, the Dow dropped 3.9 percent, the S&P 3.5 percent and the Nasdaq 3.3 percent.

The dollar fell to 63.44 euro cents from 63.57 euro cents on Thursday and dropped against the Japanese currency to 103.39 yen from 104.11 yen.
DPA